


Labyrinth of Thorns

by tianaluthien



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Friendship, Romance, Sequel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-22
Updated: 2015-02-27
Packaged: 2018-02-26 15:22:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2656901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tianaluthien/pseuds/tianaluthien
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It began with the book and the barn owl. Just like last time. Sequel to "Forgotten". ****ON HIATUS.****</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Lightning flashed, sheets of blue electricity, and the wind howled, bending the tree branches back and forth so that they creaked and moaned, reaching over to tap the windows of the school library.

“Through dangers unnumbered and hardships untold…”

There came a loud _tap_ against the window, louder than before. Some of the children jumped, looking at each other nervously.

Sarah bit back a smile and continued to read. “…I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City, to take back the child which was—”

“Look!” a girl squealed, pointing behind Sarah. “An owl!”

Sarah whirled, the book falling from her fingers. _What?_

All around her the children were talking and pointing, pressing up against the window to get a better look at the owl.

The barn owl.

It flapped its wings, darting up, down, sideways, sometimes thumping its beak against the glass pane. 

“It’s him!”

“It’s the Goblin King!”

The owl twitched its head and met Sarah’s gaze. It flapped its wings, seeming to hover untouched by the force of the gale, its unblinking eyes never leaving her.

_It **is** you. Damn._

She rose to her feet, lifted her chin, the world falling away, falling silent. She no longer stood in the elementary school library but in another twilight plane, pieces of a shattered maze floating around her, Jareth offering her—

_“Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave.”_

Her mind unfroze, the old words rising in her throat, moving past her lips. “You have no power over me,” she whispered.

None of the children heard her, but the owl reeled back, as if struck. It blinked, glared at her. Lightning flashed again, dazzling her—

The owl was gone. 

Outside it began to rain.

~*~

Sitting in her tiny office in the library, listening to the rain slash against the windows, Sarah turned the book over in her hands. The red cloth cover was worn and dog-eared from years of reading, smooth to the touch, though the silver title still glittered as brightly as ever.

The Labyrinth.

Jareth. 

Over and over her hands turned the book, front to back, side to side, top to bottom. Nearly sixteen years had passed since the Labyrinth and the visits from her friends had grown less, something about the way between the realms becoming harder to cross, until they’d finally stopped. But never once in all that time had she seen the owl.

Until today. Today when she had chosen to read _The Labyrinth_ for story hour. 

_Samhain. Idiot._

She doubted it was a coincidence. The bastard had a reason for everything and could manipulate the smallest word, action to his purposes. 

Which did nothing to explain the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. The way the owl had looked at her reminded her of—

 

_The sky was a purple twilight, stars sparkling coldly, and she stood amidst the ruins of a stone hall. All around her the pieces of a stone maze floated up, down, side to side, everything in chaos._

_Jareth was speaking, advancing slowly, a crystal globe held by the tips of his long, gloved fingers._

_It made her wonder why she’d never seen his hands._

_“Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave…”_

_His voice was so gentle but when she looked into his eyes, he seemed to be…pleading. Almost frightened._

No. It can’t be. He’s just trying to trick me. But—what do I say?

_“Sarah…”_

_She closed her ears, looked away. “My kingdom is as great…as great…”_

_He was close now, so close that she felt rather than saw him. Felt the unnatural warmth radiating from his fingers, fingers that were close enough to touch, holding the crystal with her all of her dreams. She swayed, felt the pull, the power being offered—_

That’s it.

_Her head came up and she stared into Jareth’s face. That ageless, angelic face that was now strangely drawn and frail._

Toby. Remember Toby.

_“You have no power over me.”_

_His lips moved soundlessly, his features twisted into the most awful expression of defeat and anguish she had ever seen. He raised his arm, threw the crystal above his head. There was a gust of wind—the crystal shattered—Jareth disappeared, his cloak fluttered to the ground—she was falling again—falling—falling—_

_“Sarah…”_

What have I done?

_And then she was home._

 

The book fell from her hands to land with a quiet _thump_ on her desk. She hadn’t thought of that moment in years. She had been right, there had been no other choice that she could have lived with.

Then why was she crying?


	2. Chapter 2

She tried to stop thinking about what had happened. She pushed it to the back of her mind and went on with her day, but once the bell rang at three o’clock and the kids were rushing to school buses and parents there was nothing left to distract her. She left the school amidst pouring rain and arrived, completely drenched, at rehearsal.

Rehearsal for _Labyrinth._

Turning the book into a play had seemed like such a fun idea at the time.

With a sigh, she looked down at the script. “Jasper, I need you to be more threatening when you enter. You just stole a kid. You are not a nice guy.”

“I was trying to go for the subtext.”

Sarah pinched the bridge of her nose. _Et tu, Brute?_ “She’s fifteen, Jasper. Try to remember that.”

“But—”

“We can have a discussion about the Goblin King’s psychology later, but right now we need to get this—”

Someone laughed. “Oh, you precious thing.”

Sarah whirled. 

Nothing.

Squinting against the glare of the stage lights, she peered out across the vacant auditorium. The door at the end closed with a quiet _snick._

“Sarah?” There was a hand on her arm, warm and reassuring. “Sarah, are you all right?”

She blinked and passed a hand over her eyes, turning to face Jasper. He was eyeing her worriedly. So was everyone else. Had no one else heard it? No, of course not.

“I’m fine,” she said, forcing herself to meet his gaze. “The storm startled me.”

The expression on his face said he didn’t believe her – he knew her too well – but he let it pass. “Scaredy cat,” he murmured.

She laughed and punched his arm. “Shut up,” she said, and bent to pick up her script. A trail of glitter fell from the pages and her eyes narrowed. _Damn._ “Tell you what. Why don’t we call it a night?”

A few people cheered and Jasper grinned.

“Oh come on, I’m not _that_ bad,” she laughed.

“Whatever you say, lady,” Shirin called, grinning as she waltzed backstage.

“Don’t leave without me!”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Shaking her head, Sarah turned to leave but a hand on her arm stopped her. Biting her lip, she glanced back at Jasper. “Yes?”

He had the grace to look sheepish and released his grip. “So you’re still coming tonight?”

“Of course I am. Why makes you think I’ve changed my mind?”

He huffed in exasperation. “Sarah...I know you, and you’ve been off all afternoon. What happened? Is it Toby?”

She felt herself grow cold. She hadn’t even thought to call Toby. “No, he’s fine. He’s been on his meds and hasn’t had an asthma attack in months.”

“Then what is it?”

“Jasper, just leave it. It’s nothing, really.”

“Like hell it is.”

“And that’s my cue. I’ll see you later.” 

“Sarah—”

She kept on walking.

***

Shirin was already waiting in the car, with the wipers going furiously. Sarah waved at her from the porch of the theatre, as she keyed in Toby’s number. “Pick up, pick up,” she muttered.

“Yo.” Toby’s voice sounded in her ear.

“Toby.” She wanted to cry with relief.

“You were expecting someone else?”

“Might have been, yeah.”

There was a pause. Then: “I thought today felt weird. If it’s any comfort, I won’t be answering the door tonight. Only an idiot would take his kids out in the rain. Unfortunately. I had this uber cool mask—”

“You would have blacklisted the house,” she said dryly.

“That’s the point. Look, I promise not to take candy from strangers or talk to weirdos. Okay?”

“Okay. Just…be careful.”

“Whatever.”

With a sigh, she shoved the phone back into her bag and made a dash for Shirin’s car.

“What took you so long?” Shirin asked, backing out of the parking lot.

Sarah made a face and squeezed water from her hair. “Jasper.”

“Ah.” Shirin gave her a look and pulled onto the street. “Are you sure you want to go tonight? I can take you home.”

It was tempting, so tempting. But going back on a promise wasn’t something she wanted to start doing. Especially now. “It’s a cast party, Shirin. If the director doesn’t show up, it’ll look weird.”

“If you’re sure.”

“I’m not.”

Shirin glanced at her. “At least you’ve got a wingman.”

Sarah smiled and settled back in the seat, turning on the seat warmers. “That I do.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the delay in posting this. School is taking up a lot of my time. Hopefully it won't be too long until the next update. Thanks for reading.

The rain had lessened to a steady drizzle by the time the girls arrived at the mansion. It was a heritage building regularly rented out for parties, and since Jasper was in the play and his family had connections, they’d got the rental for a song.

She’d passed it countless times, longing to go in, and now that she saw it, she felt as though she’d stepped into a dream: paneled wood and crystal chandeliers, sparkling mirrors and polished floors. She was still hoping to find a secret passage before the night was over.

Music drifted up the stairs and through the crack at the bottom of the door as she leaned closer to the mirror, putting the finishing touches on her makeup. 

“Sarah? Can I come in?”

“Door’s open, Shirin.”

Shirin swept in, all violet and black, and stopped dead. “Hot damn, woman.”

Sarah laughed and took a step back from the mirror: she wore a glittering white gown that flowed down from one shoulder, hugging her body and floating gently to her feet. Her hair tumbled down her back, woven with amethysts and white jewels that had once belonged to her grandmother. On her face she’d painted sparkling white and purple wings that made her look just the smallest bit wicked.

“If Jasper gets grabby, let me know and I’ll kick his ass.”

“That’s sweet. But I can kick his ass myself, and he knows it.”

“Just helpin’ a sister out. Wherever did you get the idea?”

The smile faded as she looked in the mirror, suddenly seeing a room full of lights and dancers, the wings of an owl brushing the air above her head.

“A dream,” she said at last. “A dream from a long time ago.”

_Fear me, love me…_

“Sarah? Are you all right?”

She turned away from the mirror and the vision faded. _If you decide to remember it, remember **all** of it. _ “I’m fine. Let’s go.”

~

The ballroom was like something out of a fairy tale.

Or the Labyrinth.

The crystal chandeliers glowed softly, light refracting into a thousand colours. The mirrors that lined the walls made the room seem larger, creating a never-ending well of reflections, and the scents of jasmine and roses and honeysuckle filled the air.

“Oh you precious thing…”

A breath of warm air ghosted across her neck and she whirled.

“Sarah? Are you sure you’re alright?”

Shirin was holding her arm, looking at her with an expression of concern. “It’s not Jasper, is it?”

“Jasper…? No. Shirin, I’m fine.”

Shirin let go but her expression remained unconvinced. “You know where to find me.”

“With Bruno.”

“Where else?”

And with that, Shirin was gone and Sarah was left feeling unexpectedly bereft. Taking a deep breath, she raised her chin and stepped into the ballroom.

Music filled her ears, seeped into her blood, and she swayed and stepped around the dancers, turning in slow circles to make sure she missed nothing.

That was when she saw him.

He stood in shadow, just outside on the balcony, tall, thin, and pale. He wore the same blue coat from their first dance and as his mismatched eyes landed on her, he smiled.

 


End file.
